


Soulful Moments

by Medianox



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: HeartGold & SoulSilver | Pokemon HeartGold & SoulSilver Versions
Genre: Character Death, Drabble Collection, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Nuzlocke Challenge, POV Pokemon, Soul Link Challenge
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-09-03
Packaged: 2020-06-26 12:11:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 2,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19767943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Medianox/pseuds/Medianox
Summary: Two trainers set out with their starters - a Beldum and a Gible - to travel the Johto region. Here are some memorable moments of the journey, told through the eyes of the Pokémon and with a bit of humor sprinkled in.





	1. For Starters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t really expect anyone to read this, but for what it’s worth, here’s some context. This is a short story collection based on a HeartGold Soul Link Challenge I’m playing with a friend. Normal Nuzlocke rules apply, plus Pokémon that are obtained on the same route between our games are linked and die together. Wild Pokémon are randomized. It won’t be much of a coherent story, just memorable moments. I’ll try to keep them in a Drabble format, with either 100, 200, 300 or 400 words. Though some might be longer if necessary.
> 
> I’ll give a short overview of the relevant characters before every chapter. The first story is a meeting between our starters:
> 
> -Grimclaw (Gible), linked to Skyfire (Beldum)

Grimclaw the Gible examined the human in front of her thoroughly. She had a trainer now? And there was another one still in the lab that was friendly with him. She snarled gruffly. Working for humans. What a bother. She preferred to bite and tear freely.

Hmph. Still, better than rotting in a lab. Her trainer seemed enthusiastic enough. Hopefully she would get to battle a lot. And he better not give her stupid commands. Otherwise, she’d have to chomnomnom some sense into him.

Huh, what was that? Her trainer’s companion came out of the lab, another Pokémon floating behind her. Oh, a Beldum, wasn’t it?

“Look, Grimclaw, this is your new partner, Skyfire.”

Partner? Hm, Metagross were powerful, at least. Should be acceptable. Skyfire appraised her as well, before bobbing up and down in the air approvingly. Yeah, they’d make a strong team.

Grimclaw gave her new partner a sharp-toothed grin. The next moment, she toppled over as the Beldum rammed into her stomach at full power.

“Oh god, I’m sorry! That’s just Skyfire’s way of giving others a hug!” her partner’s trainer said.

Grimclaw groaned, lying on the ground in pain. Great.

Nice to meet you too, weirdo.


	2. Critical Struggle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Izumi (Meditite - Level 2 in this chapter)

Izumi was in trouble. She was only supposed to watch the battles from the sidelines, learning second-hand to ease her into it. But the Wynaut in front of her had other plans. She hadn’t seen it coming. It had just suddenly been there without warning. And it didn’t let her leave.

She had tried, of course. But as soon as she turned, she felt frozen in space or time or both. She couldn’t tell _why_ she couldn’t run. Only that escape was impossible.

Unfortunately, she didn’t have any moves to hit it with. In turn, neither did the Wynaut. It just stood there, smiling at her with so much innocence that she barely wanted to hurt it, even as she struggled to do some damage in the first place. She knew that she had been charmed, but that didn’t mean she wanted to hurt this baby.

She had already chugged down one potion, but that could only do so much. In her efforts of defeating it, she hurt herself more than she hurt the Wynaut. Things looked bleak and with a sinking feeling, she realized that she was going to die.

One more uncoordinated attack and again, the Wynaut seemed unfazed while she fell back painfully. Breathing hard, she struggled to stand. Her legs shook and she could feel the exhaustion taking over her entire body. And yet, as she sensed certain death looming over her, it ignited a flame deep inside her.

She didn’t want to die here and she _wouldn’t_. She refused to give up when the journey had barely begun. Her trainer was counting on her. Her _partner_ was counting on her! She couldn’t let them down!

With a tremendous effort, she lunged forward once more. And even though it broke her heart to hurt a child, she put all of her strength into that one last attack. She hit the Wynaut square in the face, sending it flying.

Feeling the toll that desperate attack had taken on her body, she heard the blood rushing in her ears as the life drained from her steadily. Then, just as death reached out for her, it stopped and she could breathe again. Izumi swayed, laughing in relief when she realized that she was still alive. Then she fell over and passed out, praying to whoever might be listening that she wouldn’t have to face another Wynaut in her life.


	3. Every Kill Counts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Skyfire (Beldum), linked to Grimclaw (Gible)  
> -Zinogre (Shinx), (linked to Izumi (Meditite))

When the moving platform finally took them back down on solid ground after their first gym battle, Skyfire could see Grimclaw and her trainer waiting for them at the entrance. From the smug expression on the Gible’s face, Skyfire could tell that she had something to tell her partner.

And sure enough, Grimclaw immediately waddled over, saying, “So, you realize that I have more kills than you now?”

“Kills?”

She growled impatiently. “Yes, kills. How many Pokémon each of us defeated in boss battles. I beat that weakling on my own, so I got two kills. You only got one, the Pidgey. Which means I’m in the lead!”

“I wasn’t aware that we were having a competition.”

“Tch, ‘course we do. It’s a challenge. We wanna be the strongest team, we gotta work for it. And you’re pathetic if you let Zinogre take over your battles.”

“That Pidgeotto had Roost. I would have taken a lot of damage from recoil. Zinogre had a much better match-up with Spark,” Skyfire pointed out. “Of course, it’s easy for you to just use Dragon Rage.”

“Yeah, so? I still beat him alone and you needed help. Not my problem if your only move sucks.”

“It’s not my only move anymore,” Skyfire corrected her. “My trainer got the TM for Meteor Mash and I learned it.”

Grimclaw waved her stubby arms around indignantly. “Woah, how do you get a strong move early and I have to wait?”

“It was just luck.”

Grimclaw grumbled low in her throat, until her eyes went wide. “Hold up, how do you even use it? Aren’t you supposed to use your arm for the mashing part? How’re you supposed to mash’em when you don’t have arms?”

“That’s not a problem. I just ram my opponents with my body,” Skyfire explained, making a tiny dash forward to emphasize the point.

Grimclaw took a wary step back, eyes narrowing. “Isn’t that exactly what you’re doing when you use Take Down?”

“Yes.”

“… Then where’s the difference?!”

“Meteor Mash doesn’t have recoil.”

“But you’re doing the same thing!”

Skyfire hummed. “It’s hard to explain. It involves similar movement, but it _feels_ different.”

Grimclaw didn’t look convinced. Skyfire didn’t blame her. Surely an outsider had difficulties grasping it.

“Do you want me to demonstrate it?”

“No thanks. I think I still have bruises from your last hug.”

“… That’s something else entirely.”

“My stomach disagrees.”


	4. Failed Retreat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Beatrix (Larvitar), linked to Damon (Zubat)

Beatrix awoke in an inexplicable panic. Automatically, she analyzed her surroundings. Room. Bright colors. Lying in a bed. Medical equipment on the nightstand. A Pokémon Center? How had she ended up here? She tried to sit up, but her body was unresponsive. She could barely wiggle her toes. The wave of panic that had ebbed away crashed back into her full force. What was going on?

“Awake at last, I hear.”

The voice startled her. If she hadn’t been unable to move, she would have jumped up, ready to fight whoever had snuck up on her. Straining to see over her head, she noticed that it was just her soul partner, Damon, hanging upside down from the bed frame above her head. The sight calmed her a bit.

“What happened?” she asked. Her voice was raspy.

“Funny story. You were out training and all of a sudden your trainer is rushing back, with you unconscious in his arms. I first thought you had died. You almost did.”

Training? That sounded about right, though it was all a bit hazy. “I barely remember anything.”

He was silent for a moment, then he said, “You encountered a Remoraid. Tried to flee, but you were too slow and – _splash!_ – got hit by a Water Gun.”

Beatrix shuddered involuntarily as the memory came back to her. Of course, she hadn’t wanted to face a water Pokémon, so she had turned to retreat. The next thing she felt was the shock rippling through her when she felt a blast of cold water dousing her back, making her freeze. After that, nothing.

“I see.”

Damon leaned over to her and she had to cross her eyes to keep him in sight. He sounded almost conspiratorial as he said, “You know, this wouldn’t have happened if you weren’t so slow.”

“Easy for a Zubat to say.”

“I mean it. You might want to think about speed training.”

Well, he had a point. It couldn’t hurt. “What about you? Did you finish training for the next gym?” Seeing as Bugsy trained bug Pokémon, they could both be helpful.

Damon swung back. “Not quite yet. I thought it would be better to stay with you for a while, to make sure you were okay. Someone has to keep an eye on you.”

That last part amused her. “You don’t even have eyes.”

“Don’t think that’s going to stop me.”


	5. Lake of Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Satan (Slugma)

He knew that someday he would be recognized for what he was: a supreme being that was able to burn entire cities to the ground. Well, he hadn’t quite reached the part with the burning cities, but this gym was a good start to build his reputation. Satan was pleased. He knew that his trainer didn’t have much faith in him. Yet. She had tried to beat the bugs with Skyfire first, but when the Beldum took too much damage, she had finally seen that he was the superior choice. Defeating both Kakuna and Scyther was child’s play.

It was quite marvelous, seeing the flames licking at the large tree. It was such a shame that the trainers were scrambling to put out the fire rapidly spreading over the grass. They were ruining a work of art.

Bugsy gave his trainer a murderous look, which was ruined by the fact that his fringe was singed. “Get out of my gym,” he seethed.

His trainer took the badge with a smile and motioned for Satan to leave. Satisfied with the acknowledgement, he followed, igniting one more tree by spitting fire at it as he passed it. Just to send a message.


	6. Get Stomped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Beatrix (Larvitar), linked to Damon (Zubat)  
> -Godzilla (Nidorino), linked to Satan (Slugma)  
> -Grimclaw (Gible), linked to Skyfire (Beldum)

Whitney turned out to be a problem. Beatrix had gone into the battle expecting a tense but overall manageable match. She resisted the Miltank’s attacks and she wasn’t moved by the attempts to attract her. The same advantages had made it easy for Skyfire to breeze through both of Whitney’s Pokémon. However, Beatrix found one flaw in the plan that caused her trouble. She just didn’t deal enough damage. Even with Rock Slide, she wasn’t strong enough. The Miltank could heal itself effortlessly while whittling down Beatrix’ HP with every move.

From the corner of her eye, she could see Damon fluttering frantically on the sidelines. She knew that her own teammates were watching her nervously from behind. Again, that hoof crashed down on her and it hurt so much she couldn’t even retaliate. It was no use. She couldn’t win this battle.

“Get out of there, I’m taking over!” Godzilla yelled, quickly placing himself in front of her. Beatrix was relieved, but also ashamed at having to back down. Especially when he grunted in pain as the Stomp that was meant for her hit him.

Godzilla charged, ready to deliver a double kick to the cow, but another kick hit him before he could. He was thrown back, sliding across the floor, then he came to a stop. He didn’t move anymore.

Grimclaw roared and jumped at the opponent before anyone could react. The Miltank was so startled it missed its next attack and the furious Gible spewed her rage until it fell over.

Before the battle had even been finished, Beatrix hobbled over to the fallen Nidorino. “Godzilla!” she cried, “Please, get up!”

She tried shaking him, but he showed no sign of life. There was nothing they could do for him. He was gone.

Damon reached her a second later to land on her head, while guilt ate away at her. If only she had been stronger. If she had been able to handle the battle on her own, this wouldn’t have happened.

“Don’t worry,” a weak voice spoke and she looked up to see Satan, Godzilla’s partner, straining to crawl over to them. Now that the soul bond was broken, the life was quickly draining from him as well. “I’ll make sure to guide him safely back to my realm. It will be fine,” he reassured her, even as his skin cooled and gradually hardened.

“Thank you,” Beatrix whispered. Damon closed his wings around her horn. She could feel him shaking.

Satan gave her a smile. “We will watch over you and welcome all our fallen comrades,” were his last words. He closed his eyes, his head being the last part to turn into stone.

There was silence. Everyone had to take in the loss of their friends that had been part of the team for such a long time.

Grimclaw eventually spoke, sounding hesitant when she asked, “So… did he realize that he’s not actually the ruler of hell?”

“Grimclaw,” Skyfire chided quietly. “Not now.”


	7. Legendary Moment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Damon (Zubat), linked to Beatrix (Larvitar)

Eusine, Damon decided, was either a moron or needed a pair of glasses. Maybe both. That guy had stopped them when they had entered the Burnt Tower, talking about his obsession with the legendary Suicune and how he was looking for a way to get into the basement where it was supposed to be.

Well, they had gotten down there before him. And Eusine had been partially correct. They found _some_ Pokémon here, alright. But the thing was…

“You’re not a Suicune,” he heard Beatrix say numbly as she stared in awe at the literal god in front of her. Arceus threw back his head gracefully before it jumped over her and galloped away.

Damon eyed the Rotom in front of him with a bit of disappointment. “ _You’re_ not even a legendary Pokémon! What’re you doing here?!”

The Rotom scowled and wordlessly zapped him.

“Ouch!” That stung! “Listen here, you little shit–!”

Blowing him a raspberry, the Rotom gave him another haughty look, then it flew off in a zigzag, soon turning invisible. Damon threw a dark look at where it had last been. He’d get the little bugger back for that, even if he had to pull a Eusine.


	8. Morty Mortified

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Peter (Raticate)

Peter was burning. That wasn’t a metaphor or anything. No, literally. There was a spark, eating its way through his fur and it hurt! He was frantic. He wanted to escape the pain but couldn’t. What made the situation even worse was the darkness they were in. He could barely see anything. It was awful. And scary. And it was so painful!

Only a few torches were illuminating the room just barely enough to see the terrifying ghosts around him. Their purple bodies blended almost completely into the blackness, but their eyes… oh god, their eyes!

He was shaking. He wanted to get out. The ghost came closer, so Peter did the only thing he could. He bit down on it as hard as he could. It was cold and creepy. Like sinking his teeth in a bucket of ice water. A shiver ran down his body. It hurt!

The ghost was quickly replaced by another one and after that, a third. They just kept coming and he was about to have a heart attack. He bit them too, when they came closer, hoping they would just leave. And please, someone douse him with water, _please,_ it hurt!

His breath got caught in his throat. There was a new one with a wicked grin. Evil red eyes glowing in the darkness. Peter whimpered, holding his paws over his eyes. He hadn’t done anything to deserve this! Someone, anyone, make them go away!

He squeaked in a panic when he felt the cold touch of the creature on him and reflexively bit down on the hand as hard as he could. It _hurt_!

There were words of praise, but Peter didn’t register them. He was just glad that being recalled into his Pokéball finally gave him blissful relief from the pain.


End file.
